Fuel pump and valve cover gasket tips?

[adam_knox]

So another learning opportunity for me. Replacing the mechanical fuel pump, valve cover gaskets, a new rebuilt carb and putting the exhaust manifold back on. Wondering if there's any tips from you guys outside of what's in the manual.

The valve cover that is closest to the front of the car is leaking. So that's why I'm putting a new seal on. Do I just unscrew the wingnuts and put the new cork one in? Just wondering if I ought to use a gasket sealer as well.

The fuel pump came out super easy. Always a little surprised when there's no gasket. Do I have to get anything lined up or can I finangle it in? Just don't want to break anything.

I'm going to plug the hole where the heat riser is supposed to be with a bolt and a copper washer. This is like my 4th time taking off the manifold. I've always used a gasket sealer in addition to the felpro gasket. You guys think I can get away with just the felpro gasket? I'm sort of on a time crunch with having to pack up the garage and not having to wait 24 hours for the gasket to cure would be really nice.

Man, wish I could be tuning up the car to head to Tim's for the shindig. While I'm turning wrenches I'll be thinking of ya'll!

[adam_knox]

Hmm, just opened up the new fuel pump, apparently its s'posed to have a gasket...the old one didn't. As of course, I had no idea of the location of the "fuel suction being in the up or down position." When I push down on the lever, it should only go down about 1/4 of an inch, correct?

One little side note, there's a cam lever pin that goes through the pump body. It sticks out on one end a bit, and as a result is not flush on the other end. I bought this new/rebuilt. Do I have to tap that in further, or is that normal?

Pin sticking out:

Other side:

[Phil Martin]

That pin holds the pump arm. A word of warning my Dodge quit and I had it towed home. Iwas taking the fuel pump off and that pin had slipped out to the point that the arm came off.When I removed pump the arm fell into the oil pan. I put o0n an electric pump and that rod is still in the pan. Try to push the rod back in place before you try to remove fuel pump.

[Don Coatney]

If your valve covers are leaking I suspect you have a plugged drain hole inside the valve cover not allowing the oil to drain back to the crankcase. In the picture below you can see what a plugged drain hole looks like.

[adam_knox]

Thanks Don! I saw that in your prior post, can I just scrape out that gunk with a screw driver if it is clogged? Should I run that engine cleaner through the oil after doing it?

And no gasket sealer should be needed right, the cork should do just fine?

Thanks again for the tip!

[adam_knox]

Thanks Shel, gonna see if I can find a vise to push it in a bit.

[Young Ed]

Another option is to find a slightly longer pin with a C or E clip on each end. Some of the rebuild kits come with that type. I too fell victim to the dreaded fuel pump arm failure. Took 17k miles though and my arm didn't fall into the pan.

[adam_knox]

Well I tried with no avail to get that pin in any further, but it looks like they put a clip around the other end... Ed, hopefully I too can get 17K out of this pin!

I think the oil leak was due to bad seals. Both cover seals had cracks. i took a picture of the inside since I've never really done this before, nothing looks gunked up.

Valves: http://imgur.com/a/8QK81#0

Some of the valves springs/shafts appear to be different heights, but I'm assuming that's normal. I haven't delved into learning the detailed inner workings of an engine yet, so as long as nothing is glaring that requires immediate attention I'm going to start putting it all back together.

[Merle Coggins]

Adam, if you can't tap the pin in the rest of the way with a hammer and punch, try tapping it out the other way, but don't knock it out. Just see if it'll move easy. If it is good and tight you'll be OK. If it moves easy you'll have to find a way to keep it in place. Normally you can get it flush on both sides and use a center punch to dimple the housing right next to the pin to deform the hole and lock the pin into place.

Then bolt the pump back in place. You may have to hold it in against the spring tension of the pump if it is on the high side of the cam lobe, but it should go in fairly easy.

Your valve chamber looks nice and clean. Just clean the gasket surfaces good and use a little grease to hold them onto the covers before bolting them back on. You don't need any sealant. The grease just helps hold them in place and allows them to come off easier the next time.

Merle

[adam_knox]

Thanks for grease idea Merle! I'll give that pin one more good whack to see if its snug...

[ptwothree]

A dab of JB weld on both ends of the pin will keep it in place. If you have a gunked up valve chamber and decide to clean it, I would also pull the oil pan and clean out all the junk that has collected there as well.

I have also found that sometimes it's better to leave a sludged motor alone till rebuild time......

[RobertKB]

When putting the valve covers back on, don't overtighten the bolts. It is tempting to get them really tight but that can warp the valve covers. In fact, make sure that the edges are straight and not warped before reinstalling. Leave the bottom part of the inner fender off so it is easy to tighten the bolts later, if needed, after the engine has been warmed a couple of times.

[TodFitch]

Well I tried with no avail to get that pin in any further, but it looks like they put a clip around the other end... Ed, hopefully I too can get 17K out of this pin!

I think the oil leak was due to bad seals. Both cover seals had cracks. i took a picture of the inside since I've never really done this before, nothing looks gunked up.

Valves: http://imgur.com/a/8QK81#0

Some of the valves springs/shafts appear to be different heights, but I'm assuming that's normal. I haven't delved into learning the detailed inner workings of an engine yet, so as long as nothing is glaring that requires immediate attention I'm going to start putting it all back together.

Looks fairly clean in there to me. The valves are at different heights because that is how the cam moves them: Each cylinder is in a different part of its cycle.